The Good Doctor Season 1 Episode 16

Pain

Recap

The episode begins with Claire and Shaun getting coffee. Shaun tells her about his experience going to a carnival with his neighbor Kenny.

They meet with a patient with complete paralysis from the chest down. He is in pain because of herniated discs. Hunter was one of Melendez's early patients.

Shaun asks the man's wife if she really married him even though he's paralyzed. Melendez was pushing on his back and the patient felt pain down his legs, even though he hasn't felt anything below his chest for 10 years.

A woman is singing to all of the doctors and dancing with Melendez when Claire walks up and yells "Mom" at her. Claire says she doesn't want to see her or hear from her.

Dr. Andrews is working on a woman with an infected implant on her cheek. They need to remove it, and it needs to be healed before it can be replaced. The patient is worried about walking around with half a face.

In the MRI with Hunter, Shaun says he didn't understand the lyrics but he liked Clarie's mom voice. Claire says she was a bad mom. Dr. Park asks how she was a bad mom. Claire tells them a story about how she saved $1000 in high school to buy a laptop, but her mom stole her money and left. She returned days later from Reno with a fancy dress and a man.

While looking at MRI results, the residents discover that Hunter has been having real pains and not phantom pains. He has a mass on his spine.

Reznick tells Jared that her friend works for a residency program in Denver. She says she can get Jared a phone call since he will need another job after this year. Jared says he fought to stay here and he's not going anywhere.

Melendez tells Hunter and his wife about the mass on his spine. He says that if they remove the mass, he is hopeful that Hunter possibly walk again.

Andrews tells his patient that he was able to remove the infected implant and replace the implant, but they need to monitor her to make sure the infection hasn't spread to other implants.

Shaun takes Hunter to do more testing. Hunter explains that people see the chair first when they see him, and Shaun should know what he's talking about. He says his brother-in-law is on the spectrum and so is his assistant. He knows that Shaun had to waste too much time trying to prove that he belonged, just like he did.

Reznick is checking on her patient when she notices a bump on her back, which could indicate that the implant infection has spread.

Andrews meets with a doctor who could help with his sperm mobility with a low-risk surgery. The surgery could cause impotence, which Andrews seems nervous about.

Melendez and the residents look at the spinal cord of their patient to see what they can do. It has wrapped around his brain stem so it will be difficult to remove.

Andrews tells his patient that all of her implants need to be removed. He asks who caught the infection, and Reznick said Jared did. The patient refuses to have her implants removed. The implants made her feel young. Her husband asks if they could try antibiotics. Andrews says they could try strong ones, but he's scared of the risks that would cause. She could die without surgery to remove the implants.

Melendez tells the patient about his findings, but Hunter wants to know what his chances are if they do remove the mass. Melendez says there is a 15% chance that the surgery will kill him.

-Hunter and his wife lay in his hospital bed and discuss the surgery. He wants to do it because it's something he can do to change his fate.

Reznick asks Jared if he wants to know why she gave him credit for finding the infection. She said she is proving a point by showing him that he's already lost because they don't respect him.

Melendez talks to Hunter and his wife. His wife does not want him to do the surgery and risk his life. She says she won't stand by and watch him die. She storms out of the room.

Claire tells her mom she still doesn't want to talk to her. She tells Claire she is sick and that she's on mood stabilizers now so she's better. She wants to try to be Claire's mom again. Claire says she will think about it.

Shaun runs stress tests on Hunter to see if he can handle the surgery. Hunter asks Shaun if he gets why he wants the surgery. He asks Shaun if he would jump at a cure for autism. Shaun says the surgery isn't guaranteed to help him walk. Shaun asks him why he would risk losing a person who accepts him the way he is for this. Hunter says losing the chair now won't make it lose the lessons it gave him.

Andrews talks to his patient. The antibiotics aren't working, but she still refuses the surgery. Her husband says to listen to the doctors. She says she can't go back to being like it used to be.

Melendez finds Hunter's wife to talk to her. She hasn't managed to leave the hospital. Melendez tells her that Hunter was his first patient as as an attending and he hated that he couldn't fix him before. She says she can't risk losing the man she fell in love with. Melendez says she's scared of the surgery working because it would be a fundamental change in them as a couple.

Drs. Park and Browne talk about whether or not they would have Hunter's surgery. When Shaun mentions his neighbor, he tells Shaun that Kenny is not his friend and is using him. Park says he has been arrested for felony theft. He forwards the background information to Shaun.

Reznick goes to the husband to ask why the wife is having this much cosmetic surgery. She says she believes it's either because he's halfway out the door or she is. He says that she loves him. Reznick tells him he needs to convince her to have the surgery and that he is a faithful and loving husband.

Hunter's wife goes to his room. He tells her that he doesn't want to do anything without her. She says he won't need her anymore. He says she's his girl, no matter what. He says he didn't marry her because he needed help hanging clothes in his closet. Shaun leans over and tells them that was nice.

The husband goes to Andrews' patient and tells her she has to have the surgery. She tells him that he was distant before and that he wasn't distant after the surgery. He says he never stopped loving her. She accuses him of cheating on her. He tells her that there was not another woman. He was addicted to gambling and was ashamed of himself. The husband walks out to Jared and Reznick and says she is going to do the surgery.

Hunter and his wife watch the sunrise together on the day of his surgery

-Shaun and Claire look at Hunter's scans before the surgery. Shaun tells her she is beautiful and smart and wants to know if she would ever date someone with a disability. She says yes. He asks why she would want the burden when she can have anyone she wants. Claire says everyone is dealing with something and that we have to love others for who they are and hope they love us too.

Shaun leaves to go to the OR. Claire says she will join him in a second. She gets her mom's phone number from the card.

Andrews asks what made his patient change his mind. Reznick says Jared did, but Andrews doesn't believe her. He makes Reznick the first assist. Jared tells her to make the call to her friend in Denver.

Hunter is going to surgery and kisses his wife goodbye. He says he can't do this but she tells him he can and that they take chances together. He agrees with tears in his eyes.

In the OR with Andrews' patient, her heart rate is climbing.

In Melendez's OR, the doctors work on removing the mass. His stats begin to drop. Shaun says they need to stop the surgery, but Melendez keeps going because he is close to removing it all.

Andrews' patient is crashing. They try shocking her heart and CPR, but she flatlines. They call her death.

Emma's husband goes to see her and says goodbye. He is devastated.

Hunter wakes up from his surgery. Melendez tells him they're not sure what to expect moving forward, but they'll be bringing in specialists to work with him. He thanks them but asks if they can talk about all of that later so he can be with his wife.

Shaun watches fondly from the doorway for a moment before giving them privacy.

Andrews is at home with his wife. Andrews tells her about the couple he met today that lost their way and then lost it all by the time they remembered what was important. He says he doesn't want them to end up like them. He wants to be fully committed to his wife. He tells her about the surgery. He says he wants to give her a family. She says there are many ways for them to have children and be a family so she doesn't want to risk their sex life.

Claire meets her mom for coffee in the hospital cafeteria at the end of her shift. She asks Claire if she likes being a surgeon. Claire says she loves it. Her mom says she wants to be closer to Claire. She asks Claire for money on securing housing. Claire writes her a check. Claire leaves the hospital and cries.

Shaun goes home to his apartment and finds Kenny waiting for him in his apartment with Chinese food. Shaun says he doesn't like Chinese food. Shaun looks at the information on his phone about Kenny. Kenny tells him he got a video game console and wants to play video games with Shaun. Shaun agrees and they play the game.